What to visit in Vendée? Maybe, like me, you want to make a tourist circuit must-sees and the most beautiful beaches of Vendée in 1 week ? If so, you will find my 7-day road trip in Vendée with the google map of the route.
This tour is easily done by 1 week in the form of road trip by car or motorhome.
However, if the duration does not suit you, you can take inspiration from it and adapt it for a 4 or 5 day tour or conversely for a 10 days tour !
What to do in Vendée?
The Vendée, with its long sandy beaches and its beautiful seaside resorts well suited to families, attracts many holidaymakers in summer.
And it is true that the Vendée is the ideal place for:
- Spend a family vacation with the only relaxation program, beach, restaurants… See my recommendations from rentals in Vendée ;
- Spend a week to enjoy nature and seaside pleasures at a lower cost… See my recommendation of Campsite in Vendée ;
- Take care of yourself and be pampered during a stay in Thalassotherapy in Loire Atlantique.
But the Vendée it is also a heritage, a culture and magnificent and very varied landscapes that it would be a shame not to visit!
What to visit in Vendée in 1 week?
For my 7 day tour, I wanted to combine unmissable tourist visits, discoveries of natural sites et housing well located to enjoy the most beautiful beaches.
What to visit in Vendée - My essentials
So here are my stages for my 1 week road trip essentials in Vendée :
- Noirmoutier Island
- Ile d'Yeu
- Saint Gilles Cross of Life
- Salt marshes
- Sables d'Olonne
- The Payré estuary (Great site of France)
- Longeville-sur-Mer
- Luzon
- Vouvant (most beautiful village in France)
- Damvix
- Marais Poitevin Natural Park
Vendée in 1 week - Circuit card
Here is the route of the circuit which allows you to visit the Vendée coast:
1 Salt marshes, mimosas, dream beaches and coves… This is the program of DAY 1 and DAY 2
Road trip in Vendée - Noirmoutier
My road trip starts with the island of Noirmoutier. To reach this peninsula, you have to take the Passage du Gois.
Gois de Noirmoutier passage
It is a 4,2 km submersible road that connects the island to the mainland and that must be taken at low tide to reach Beauvoir-sur-Mer. To take it, you must consult the tide timetables before crossing and the same for the return… You will find the tide timetables on the website of theTourist Office or http://www.passagedugois.com/crbst_5.html.
During your passage through Gois, you can discover the salt marshes and wild landscapes along the Jacobsen pier.
What to see in Noirmoutier?
The island of Noirmoutier is easily visited in half a day because its area is only 49 km². But on this little piece of land, the landscapes are multiple. In fact, Noirmoutier has fine sandy beaches, dunes, creeks, woods of pines and holm oaks and of course salt marshes.
You can visit Noirmoutier-en-l'Ile which is the capital of the island. You will walk along its alleys lined with pretty white houses, its small port without forgetting to visit its 12th century church and its medieval castle on the Place d'Armes.
Most beautiful beaches in Noirmoutier
Then you can go to Chair wood to enjoy its charming sandy beach decorated with wooden cabins (ladies' beach). From there you can follow the Souzeaux promenade which runs along the ocean for 2 km.
This walk takes you along magnificent coves with nice views of the Jade Coast and Pornic.
You will reach the Anse Rouge beach who is one of most beautiful coves of Noirmoutier Island. Postcard decor with its lighthouse which is in fact the Plantier tower. Then the walk will end at Souzeaux beach.
Where to stay in Noirmoutier?
If you want to be close to this beautiful beach of Anse Rouge, in a small house with all the comforts and a beautiful swimming pool, here is the address that I recommend (very good value for money):
2 Mysterious megaliths, wild nature, rocky coasts and white sand beaches… This is the program of DAY 3 and DAY 4
Road trip in Vendée - Ile d'Yeu
My road trip takes us for this 3th and 4th day discover the unspoiled nature ofIle d'Yeu with its beautiful rocky coast to the west and its sandy beaches to the east.
How to get to Ile d'Yeu?
To get to Ile d'Yeu this morning, you have to go to the Barre de Monts - Fromentine from where the regular maritime connections leave to the island of Yeu. You can also (at the same price) go there from Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. If you want to book your crossing: www.compagnie-vendeenne.com
We leave our car in the parking lot and we leave for 2 days!
How to visit Ile d'Yeu?
If like me you have little time to visit the island, the best way to discover its essentials and its pretty coasts is to rent a bike as soon as you arrive for a nice hike. But for the less athletic, know that you can also rent a scooter or a car.
Personally, I did not have the courage to go around the island which represents about 30 kilometers and takes almost 5 hours! No, but I opted for a part that goes through the route around the island by bike and cuts across via a cycle path to make a shorter loop (see map below).
Note that we arrive at Port-Joinville and that all rentals are nearby and give you a map of hiking and biking trails.
Map of my cycling tour on Ile d'Yeu
Here are the essentials of the Ile d'Yeu that can be discovered by doing my bike tour:
- Port Joinville;
- Soux Beach;
- Old castle ;
- Sabias Beach;
- Pointe du Châtelet;
- Dolmen de la Planche in Puare,
- Port Joinville.
Most beautiful beach on Ile d'Yeu
If I had to choose only one it would be the Soux beach south of the island (see photo below). But the Sabias beach is also beautiful and recognized as one of the most beautiful coves of Ile d'Yeu.
Where to stay on Ile d'Yeu?
The hotel and Airbnb offer is not very important on the island and compared to the other accommodations that I have been able to look at, the hotel that I present to you below is rather nice! By the beach, with a beautiful terrace and a good little restaurant, this hotel is perfect for 2 nights:
3 Long sandy beaches, lively seaside resorts, luxurious buildings… This is the program of the DAY 5
Vendée in 7 days - Around Les Sables d'Olonne
For this Day 5 of my tourist circuit in Vendée, heading south through Saint-Jean-de-Monts (large seaside resort) and following along the coast!
Saint Gilles Cross of Life
A first stop is a 30-minute drive from Saint Jean de Monts in Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. You can stroll in the alleys of the left bank around the Saint-Gilles church, have a little coffee on a terrace, or stroll along the port.
Salt marshes
Then you will take the road again towards the famous seaside resort of Sables d'Olonne. Before arriving there, you will pass by the salt marshes that you can visit by stopping at the Salines. Thus, you will have the opportunity to cross the marshes by boat, canoe or paddle and enjoy their adventure park ...
Les Sables d'Olonne
In Les Sables d'Olonne, I recommend that you take a short walk between luxurious buildings and the ocean by taking the Embankment promenade which leads to the salt marshes.
Then you can visit the Talmont Castle which is a former fortress of Richard the Lionheart built in 1020 on a rocky promontory.
And to fully enjoy Les Sables d'Olonne and the beaches, it is best to end the day and spend the night there.
Airbnb Sables d'Olonne
Here is my tip for staying near the city center, in a nice area from which you can do everything on foot (market, beach, sightseeing, thalassotherapy, casino ...):
Rental of an Airbnb between lake and pine forest and facing the ocean
4 Woods, dunes, river and beaches… This is the nature program of the DAY 6
Vendée in 1 week - Payré Estuary
Today, we are going to discover an exceptional natural site: L 'Payré estuary which is located ten kilometers south of Les Sables d'Olonne, between Jard and Talmont Saint Hilaire.
Just walk along the coast in the direction of Longeville-sur-Mer and we arrive at the beach of Veillon.
Veillon Beach
This "ecological" beach is a little gem well preserved from mass tourism ...
Magnificent sandy beach, it benefits from an exceptional natural setting which has earned it some labels such as Natura 2000 and a label for excellent management of areas protecting biodiversity.
Veillon beach - Hiking
When you arrive on Veillon beach, you can park your car in the beach car park and set off to explore this great natural site. To do this, I invite you to take a beautiful hike between beach, estuary and marsh ...
You will have to go to the beach and follow along the dune towards the Pointe du Payré then bypass the dune and go up the river on the right bank by following the Bois de pines et de chênes holmes on the coastal path.
Then we arrive at the oyster huts. There you have to follow the white path that crosses the oyster beds. At the end of the path, you have to turn left and continue in front of the Castle. Continue to the village.
You will arrive on beach avenue, cross and take the pedestrian alley. After the mini golf, go into the forest and follow the path to find the Parking.
Payré estuary
The site is protected from the ocean by the cliffs of the Point of Payré and dune of Veillon. He has managed to preserve a very rich and diverse flora and fauna. You will have the opportunity to observe many birds and some small mammals.
To end the day in a relaxing and lazy style, I recommend that you take the direction of Longeville-sur-Mer and stop at Saint Vincent sur Jard.
Hotel in Saint Vincent sur Jard
For its exceptional location on the waterfront, its swimming pool, its restaurant and its very low price, I recommend the Hotel below:
Hotel l'Océan in Saint Vincent sur Jard
5 Old stones, canals, ponds, reeds, birds… This is the program of the DAY 7
This morning, I advise you to get up early to make a beautiful route punctuated by tourist sites and which will end with a total immersion in the Marais Poitevin.
What to visit in Vendée - Marais Poitevin
From Longevilles sur Mer, you will take the direction of Luçon which is the 1st stage of the day.
Luzon
You can quickly discover its cathedral et its park. If you have time, visit the reinforced concrete water tower.
Medieval city of Vouvant
Elected among the most beautiful villages in France, the medieval village of Vouvant is nestled in the hollow of a river. Take the time to stroll through its narrow streets and along its ramparts to the foot of the Mélusine Tower.
But this beautiful medieval city also offers visitors beautiful gardens and a pretty promenade along the Rivière la Mère.
Marais Poitevin
Direction the Green Venice ! To discover this marshy area and its shades of greens and oranges, you will have to drive a little less than 1 hour to get to Damvix.
There, you have to go to the La Grenouille Bleu pier to take a boat trip along its canals.
Thus, you will enjoy a guided tour along the water and through traditional villages on the 37 hectares of wet marsh. The natural settings (of course) are just wow !!!
Fancy another tourist route?
Here is how to discover the Normandy in the footsteps of the impressionists
la Pink Granite Coast in 2 days
or a original road trip in Occitania ?
And if you are unsure of the destination of your next vacation: Where to go in France this summer?